ROK approves civic activists' visit to DPRK for joint new year's event

SEOUL -- The unification ministry of the Republic of Korea (ROK) in charge of inter-Korean affairs on Friday approved the visit by civic activists to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to hold a joint new year's event with their DPRK counterparts next week.

Baik Tae-hyun, the ministry's spokesman, told a press briefing that the inter-Korean new year's event, pushed for by civic groups, was scheduled to be held in the DPRK's scenic resort of Mount Kumgang from Feb 12-13, saying the travel by about 230 civic activists to the DPRK was approved.

The ROK's participants were composed of activists from various civic groups, including labor, woman, farmer, culture and youth organizations.

It would be the first civilian exchange between the two countries this year.

Meanwhile, the ministry gave a green light earlier this week for 22 officials of Hyundai Asan, a Hyundai Group unit in charge of inter-Korean businesses, to visit the Mount Kumgang resort from Friday to Saturday to mark the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Hyundai Asan.